The SEARCH continues. I've been trolling eBay pretty hard and digging through seller feedback to find the better ones. So far, my favorite piece of feedback:
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Show Your SOVIET Basses - also, some GAS advice needed
- Thread starter Matt O
- Start date
Around here I've never seen a Soviet bass. Polish, Czech and East German, sure, but never a Soviet one, so I can't say just how lousy they are. The only Soviet audio equipment I remember running across is microphones - a few actually have a good reputation and are quite sought after.
Somebody oughta start making small runs of modernized copies of Eastern Bloc guitars, with longer scales, normal hardware and normal pickups (just put them under weird covers for looks). I bet they'd sell. Especially something like that Orfeus.
Here's a Polish Defil that's also weird in its own way.
Somebody oughta start making small runs of modernized copies of Eastern Bloc guitars, with longer scales, normal hardware and normal pickups (just put them under weird covers for looks). I bet they'd sell. Especially something like that Orfeus.
Here's a Polish Defil that's also weird in its own way.
Not entirely... Televizor comes to mind, they were never arrested (although it was already glasnost/perestrojka at the time, so they were a bit softer). (But you're right: Bravo got arrested, although they didn't have any outspoken songs, unless songs about yellow boots can be considered dangerous).
You can't get much more mojo than rat droppings in your axe.
Right, I don't know what the dude is complaining about. Makes it totally legit.
Search update: I sent a message to a seller in Slovakia that has a lot of Jolana stuff on Ebay asking if they ever come across a Jolana D to put up for sale, and they just replied with this:
Hello. Jolana D-bass is forbidden to sell on ebay. When I sold this bass on
ebay, Rickenbacker company had me locked. breach of license.
So, it seems that Rickenbacker is a bit more concerned with used clones than Fender or Gibson.
Hello. Jolana D-bass is forbidden to sell on ebay. When I sold this bass on
ebay, Rickenbacker company had me locked. breach of license.
So, it seems that Rickenbacker is a bit more concerned with used clones than Fender or Gibson.
I briefly owned a Tonika long time ago. It was almost unplayable and the pickups were utter crap. However, in theory, it could be fixed by installing a better bridge and pickups and doing a setup. I rather liked the body shape, and it was really comfortable to play when sitting. Don't remember if it neck-dived. Probably not because the body was heavy.
Besides that, I owned a soviet Auto Wah. It was not bad at all. It had DIN connectors like all Soviet musical equipment.
Besides that, I owned a soviet Auto Wah. It was not bad at all. It had DIN connectors like all Soviet musical equipment.
[QUOTE="Temcat, post: 16497882, member: 88313" It had DIN connectors like all Soviet musical equipment.[/QUOTE]
I've noticed that a lot of guitars have a 5 pin DIN input, using just two pins on the inside, I assume?. Really strange. But kind of cool. I'll just have to solder up some custom cables I guess. I wonder if 1/4" jacks were really hard to find behind the curtain.
I've noticed that a lot of guitars have a 5 pin DIN input, using just two pins on the inside, I assume?. Really strange. But kind of cool. I'll just have to solder up some custom cables I guess. I wonder if 1/4" jacks were really hard to find behind the curtain.
I think that was just a question of a different standard, not availability as such. The Soviets liked being different even just for the sake of it. In late eighties, some people started replacing DINs with 1/4" jacks on their gear.
There was also a removable pickup and tone circuit assembly for acoustics with 2 electromagnetic pickups and 3 knobs. It had a 1/8" mono jack. It looked like this:
I imagine the DIN connection could be a pain in the ass to use here in the US. Great for keeping people from borrowing your basses though.
A "bit more" puts it mildly. Ric is positively PARANOID about copies of any kind. Some time back I recall someone telling about a go-round with Ric trying to replace his destroyed logo. The guy owned a legit Ric, bought new from the factory years before, and could prove beyond any doubt that his bass was a real Ric, but they refused to sell him a logo because their policy was that to get a new one, you had to turn in the old one (which was destroyed). He finally gave up with a bad taste in his mouth. Most of us on usenet following the episode lost a lot of respect for Ric as well.
Around here I've never seen a Soviet bass. Polish, Czech and East German, sure, but never a Soviet one, so I can't say just how lousy they are. The only Soviet audio equipment I remember running across is microphones - a few actually have a good reputation and are quite sought after.
Somebody oughta start making small runs of modernized copies of Eastern Bloc guitars, with longer scales, normal hardware and normal pickups (just put them under weird covers for looks). I bet they'd sell. Especially something like that Orfeus.
Hey, That is MY Orfeus Hebros! Made in Bulgaria in the Soviet Bloc days. I ditched the original crappy electronics for CTS pots and Switchcraft jack, and added the pickup selector switch.
Didn't expect much when I bought it off eBay, but after a quick set-up it turned up to be a decent bass.
I think that was just a question of a different standard, not availability as such. The Soviets liked being different even just for the sake of it. In late eighties, some people started replacing DINs with 1/4" jacks on their gear.
There was also a removable pickup and tone circuit assembly for acoustics with 2 electromagnetic pickups and 3 knobs. It had a 1/8" mono jack. It looked like this:
This is pure genius. I've seen similar contraptions for Oberkrain music guitarist and zithers back in the day.
I owned in early 90's a - get this - spring reverb for acoustic guitars: two springs housed in a plastic box, which you placed between bridge and bottom strap pin. Springs were attached to thin metal bar that you hooked to bridge saddle. Vibration was transfered to thin metal bar and thus was transfered to spring which produced reverb - it actually worked lol.
Guys, that's not mine, it's someone else. Anton is very common name in RussiaI'll tell my story a bit later cause it may turn into a novel. For now this is our band Love Rocket on local radio station in Moscow a month ago. Sorry for Russian text in the song, the song is called Radio Machine.
This is not the only band I play with because I prefer something funkier than this.
My parents always listened to 70's and 80's disco acts. They also showed more modern Russian bands like Night Snipers and Zveri and you guys definitely have some of that beautiful post 80's popsa sound. That song was fantastic.
Your bass synth tone is phenomenal, what pedal do you use?
Anton, where did you guys gig in the Soviet days.....the whole country basically closed after dark.....Although for almost a week it NEVER really got dark.....We hooked up with local folks and partied in homes.....we kept getting trapped in the outskirts of Leningrad ( St Petersburg) when all the damn bridges would be raised....Used to sleep in cabs.....Another time we bribed the operator of one of those giant Hydrofoil ships to completely unwrap and untie the vessel for a 2:00 am PRIVATE cruise around the Neva.....really cool. i think it costs us 5 bucks.
Sounds like stories of a ex coworker of mine who sold bootleg vinyls and sat in prison for it.
Here are some pics of pics from CCCP circa 1990. First is an example the boat we " rented"....Second is from on the boat at 2am my Mafia buddy counting his rubles after a 2000 ruble bribe....a big one for him. The next is the international dorm we stayed for 12 weeks.......coachroaches and knif weilding arabs everywhere.....blood trails from fights in the halls very common........the last is me and my travel buddies from USA at my Mafia friends apartment for a lavish dinner. Thats me on the left 27 years ago.
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- Apr 15, 2010
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This is Akai Deep Impact bass synth. it IS phenomenal really not from tone perspective but from $$$ too. Look at asking price for it on ebay...
